overpopulation
Britishnoun
Explanation
Overpopulation is what happens when there are too many members of a species. An overpopulation of deer can lead to more of them being hit by cars and more gardens being nibbled. When the population of any group is too large for its environment to support, that's overpopulation. That can mean so many people inhabiting a region that there's not enough food for everyone, or an overabundance of rabbits in an area with no natural predators. An overpopulation of pets in the U.S. means that unwanted cats and dogs have to be euthanized every year; there are just too many of them for the number of available adopters.
Vocabulary lists containing overpopulation
Human Geography - Middle School
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Human Geography - High School
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Biodiversity and Humans - Middle School and High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In our own day, overpopulation pessimism has given way to very real worries that we aren’t replacing ourselves.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 15, 2025
"Where we have problems, and where everyone in Europe has problems, is with the wild boar population, because there is overpopulation," said Higuera.
From Barron's • Dec. 2, 2025
Delhi-based biodiversity expert Faiyaz Khudsar says easy availability of food has led to overpopulation of pigeons in many countries.
From BBC • Aug. 17, 2025
Ground squirrels at this park have long been a problem for the city, which has been cited by the county for overpopulation and has tried a number of suppression methods.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 17, 2025
The fall has been laid at the door of overpopulation, overuse of natural resources, and drought.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
